Turkey's Baykar builds plant in Ukraine, planning to invest $95.5M - Defense Express

Valerii Riabykh, a military expert and development director of the media and consulting company Defense Express, told this on the Espreso TV channel.

"The Turkish company Baykar Makina continues to implement the agreements that were concluded earlier. According to the company's representative, the construction of this enterprise in Ukraine is now proceeding according to the planned schedule. The company is making its own investments in the plant, about $95.5 million," he said.

Earlier, it was reported that the company plans to commission the plant in 2025, the Defense Express expert noted.

"Baykar Makina, with state support, is not afraid to invest in the enterprise and deploys it directly in our country. They are confident in the implementation of this project, which will employ about 500 people. It is likely that drones will be manufactured at a fairly strong pace, we are talking about the production of up to 10 Bayraktar TB2 or even Bayraktar TB3 drones in Ukraine," Riabykh said.

Representatives of the drone maker had previously reported that they had received a license from the Turkish government to launch the production of two types of drones in Ukraine - the Bayraktar TB2 and the Akıncı strategic drone, a heavier class of UAV, the expert recalled.

• On 8 August 2022, media reported that Haluk Bayraktar had acquired a site in Ukraine for the construction of a Bayraktar drone manufacturing plant.
• On 11 September, Baykar's CEO said that he had no intention to cancel plans to build a plant in Ukraine because of the war.
• On 28 October, Baykar CEO Haluk Bayraktar said that, despite some obstacles, the plan to build a plant in Ukraine was progressing. 
• On 30 April 2023, Ukraine signed three new agreements with Baykar, the manufacturer of Bayraktar drones, following its participation in the international aviation exhibition Teknofest 2023 in Turkey. 
• On 10 July, Minister of Strategic Industries Oleksandr Kamyshyn announced that the Turkish company Baykar had started construction of a plant to produce unmanned aerial vehicles in Ukraine.
• On 6 February 2024, Baykar's executive director said how many drones the plant in Ukraine would produce per year.